Heater for percussion drums



NOV. 11, 1952 c ASTLE 2,617,325

HEATER FOR PERCUSSION DRUMS Filed June 26, 1950 Christopher A. fist/e INVENTOR,

ilwmwm A 7'7'ORNEY Patented Nov. 11, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

The present invention relates to musical instruments, and more particularly to percussion drums.

The term percussion drum, as used herein, is intended to mean any instrument which obtains resonance through blows delivered upon a stretched web or membrane.

Most drums at the present time have their head or heads formed of stretched raw-hide or other sheet material which is subject to moisture aborption. When such heads are damp, they become loose instead of taut, and lose their vibratory resonance.

The prime object of the present invention is to provide a heating mechanism or dryer for the interior of percussion drums.

A further object is to provide a drum dryer which distributes the heat evenly in the drum.

An additional object is to provide a drum heat er which will not detrimentally afiect the tone of the drum.

Another object is to provide a drum heater which is simple in construction, installation, and operation.

Other objects will be apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying single sheet of drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a conventional percussion drum with its upper head removed, and showing the heating mechanism of the present invention installed therein;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view detailing one of the heating element hangers; and,

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View detailing one of the conductor insulators.

Like characters of reference designate like parts in those figures of the drawings in which they occur.

In the drawings:

The reference numeral I indicates, as a whole, a conventional percussion drum composed substantially of an annular cylindrical wall 2 havin its lower end closed by a tightly stretched sheet membrane or web 3. The wall 2 normally has its upper end also covered with a sheet similar to the sheet 3, but in Fig. 1 of the drawings, this upper sheet has been deleted to expose the interior of the drum. The wall 2 has a conventional breather hole 4, and in the present instance, the Wall 2 ha been through bored in two places to permit passage therethrough of two electrical conductors 5 and 6. Each conductor is surrounded by a rubber grommet or insulator 2 I (Fig. 3), at the point where it passes through the wall 2.

In carrying out the present invention, the interior surface of the wall 2 is provided with a plurality of identical radially spaced wire brackets or hangers 8, which are each firmly anchored at its upper end to the wall by a screw or other detent 9. The brackets 8 are substantially L- shaped in form, and are each composed of a vertical leg portion In with a perpendicular horizontal arm portion I I at its lower end. The arm portions II all project from the wall 2 toward the center thereof, and the inner end of each arm portion is provided with an upwardly turned hook I2. As best shown in Fig. 2, each hook I 2 and the adjacent part of each arm portion II is enveloped with a tubular jacket I 4 of some suitable composition which is capable of both electrical and heat insulation.

The device of the present invention further includes an endless flexible core I5, of some suitable composition having electrical and heat insulating qualities, and which is suspended complementally by the hooks I2 of the brackets 8 in inwardly spaced relation to the Wall 2, as shown in Fig. 1. The core I5 is tightly stretched, and a conventional resistance or heating coil I6 is helically wound around the core throughout its entire extent. The electrical conductors 5 and 6 are connected to opposite ends of the heating coil I6 within the confines of the wall 2, so that electricity may be conducted to the coil to cause its incandescence. It is pointed out that; the heatin element, which is composed of the core I5 and coil I6, is suspended substantially an equal distance between the two ends of the wall 2, and that it follows the contour of the wall 2 in somewhat contiguous relation. This spaced relation of the heating element from the wall 2 is sufficiently great to prevent damage to the wall when the coil I6 is charged with electricity.

Outside of the wall 2, the conductors 5 and 6 are connected into a conventional electrical fitting I1 by which the device may be connected to a source of electricity, not shown.

Obviously the invention is susceptible to some change or alteration without defeating its practicability, and I therefore do not wish to be confined to the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings and described herein, further than I am limited by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An. electrical heater mechanism for a percussion drum having a vertical annular wall with its ends closed by leather-like drum heads, said mechanism including: a heat resisting core in the form of a loop; a current resisting heating coil wound helically around the core, and substantially co-extensive therewith; and means for mounting the coil wound core horizontally within said wall substantially midway of the heads to surround the axis of the wall.

2. An electrical heater mechanism for a percussion drum having a vertical annular wall with its ends closed by leather-like drum heads, said mechanism including: a heat resisting core in the form of a loop; a current resisting heating coil wound helically around the core, and substantially co-extensive therewith; and means for mounting the coil Wound core horizontally within said wall substantially midway of the heads in spaced relation to said wall.

3. An electrical mechanism for heating percussion drums each of which has a vertical annular wall with its ends closed by leather-like drum heads, including: a current resisting heating element in the form of a loop; and means for mounting said element horizontally within said Wall substantially midway of said heads in spaced relation to the wall.

4. An electrical mechanism for heating percussion drums, each of which has a vertical annular wall with its ends closed by leather-like drum heads, including: an annular current resisting heating element of less diameter than that of said wall; and means for mounting said element horizontally Within said wall substantially midway of said heads in spaced relation to the wall.

CHRISTOPHER A. ASTLE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

